Drew Carter on fire

For all the money the Raiders threw around this past offseason, wide receiver Drew Carter looks like the steal of the free-agent class.

The fifth-year receiver from Carolina continued to catch everything thrown his way, proving himself to be the most reliable and consistent playmaker at JaMarcus Russell’s disposal through after four days of camp.

Of course, none of this means he’ll be a starter when the Raiders open the season. Javon Walker makes too much money to sit on the bench and Ronald Curry has been solid enough to hold his job.

With that said, neither of them have done the spectacular as often as Carter. In Sunday morning’s practice, he sprinted down the sideline and went high for a deep catch from Andrew Walter. When cornerback Chris Johnson tried to wrestle the ball away on the ground, Carter fought for a good 30 seconds before emerging with full control.

That mixture of speed, hands and determination will serve the Raiders’ vertical game well.

In other camp observations:

** Running back Darren McFadden dropped another easy pass, something he has done at least once a day. This one came on a quick slant in front of outside linebacker Thomas Howard, with Russell getting the ball there in a hurry.

Raiders coach Lane Kiffin notices a problem with his technique that he said can be easily corrected.

“He’s had some innacurate hand placement on some catches, which is a surprise because we didn’t see much of that in camp before,” Kiffin said. “He’s got so much going on and so much pressure on him and so many different plays. So we’re going to keep pushing him and then there will come a time when we pull back.

** One thing off McFadden’s plate are kick and punt returns. For now, the potential starters are rookie safety Tyvon Branch on kickoffs and Johnnie Lee Higgins on punts. Kiffin said McFadden remains a backup option.

** Veteran safety Greg Wesley returned to practice after missing two days with back spasms. Cut by the Chiefs last week and signed by the Raiders, his presence was immediately felt when he charged the line of scrimmage to halt running back Adimchinobe Echemandu.

Coupled with the impressive play of strong safety Gibril Wilson, this is the sort of physical play at safety the Raiders have lacked for years.

** Left tackle Kwame Harris (lower back) missed a second straight practice but will try to go at tonight’s workout. His return will allow replacement Paul McQuistan to return to guard, which is a good thing. McQuistan continued to struggle at left tackle with another false start and poor pass protection.

** Three more false starts and shaky pass blocking means deepened concerns about the offensive line when the team isn’t running the ball.

** Russell fumbled his first snap of training camp, backing away before he had control of the ball from center John Wade. Unlike the other quarterbacks in previous days, he didn’t run a lap.

** Wide receiver Jonathan Holland made the play of the day with an all-out extension catch in the end zone.

** Consider former starter Jake Grove the early frontrunner for the starting center job ahead of Wade and Chris Morris, not that the Raiders are close to picking a winner. If nothing else, he’s the only one without a botched quarterback exchange.